Baume & Mercier has really been hitting its stride the past couple of years, fitting in comfortably as the most affordable brand in the Richemont stable. But don’t mistake affordable for boring. B&M has been looking to its past for design inspiration, a strategy we wholeheartedly endorse - remember the Capeland Flyback from 2011? One piece that impressed us at SIHH was the new Clifton Complete Calendar, which is a complete dead ringer for a 1950s Baume & Mercier.

The Clifton Complete Calendar features a Dubois-Dupraz movement that displays the month, the day, and the phase of the moon (called a “poetic” complication by B&M design chief, Alexandre Peraldi) in dial apertures, as well as the date, which is pointed to by a central hand.

Speaking of the dial, the Clifton Complete Calendar can be had with a beautiful sunburst silvery white dial with gold markers or in deep blue with silver markers. Both have touches of red on the "31" date marker and on the date hand's pointer. While we wouldn't kick either configuration out of bed, the white dial does the best to channel that retro goodness we totally love.

If it weren’t for the 43-millimeter steel case (and sapphire caseback), this watch could be mistaken easily for one you’d find at a vintage shop on a side street in Geneva. Yes, 43 millimeters is large, but the Clifton Complete Calendar wears surprisingly well due to the shorter, sloping lugs. Case and movement finishing is top shelf and B&M always does a good job with straps, this watch sporting padded alligator.

In introducing their new Master Calendar, Jaeger-LeCoultre has embraced a literal connection to our Solar neighborhood, setting its astronomical complications within a physical piece of space – a meteorite. The new for 2015 Master Calendar retains the same layout, dimensions, and movement as last year’s model, but a slightly revised case and hypnotizing meteorite dial bring a very different personality to this classic calendar watch from JLC. Of course, we’ve seen meteorite dials on the Daytona and Speedmaster, but this is the first we’ve seen set within the context of an astronomical complication, let alone a classic dress watch

Baume & Mercier is one of the more wallet-friendly brands that shows at SIHH and last year released the entirely new Clifton collection. The most complicated of the Clifton watches is the 10057 Complete Calendar, a modern take on a style the was at the height of popularity in the 1940s and 50s. The Clifton Complete Calendar got our attention and we strapped it on for a full A Week On The Wrist review back in May. Click through for a ton of live photos, a brief history of the calendar watch, and our complete thoughts on this budget-conscious triple calendar.

The 1966 line from Girard-Perregaux is easily the purest from this manufacture of haute horlogerie. But it can perhaps be overlooked, considering GP's attention-grabbing, truly cutting-edge masterworks like the 2013 GPHG-winning Constant Escapement LM. While tri-axial tourbillons and triple bridges are fun to read (and write) about, it's not necessarily what the average watch lover looks for in an every day timepiece. For that, the 1966 collection does the trick, and today we take a look at this elegant full calendar in white gold.

It’s no quiet fact that the Zenith Calibre 410 is well-respected. This automatic column-wheel chronograph movement with moon phase and calendar functions was retired in 2000, after more than three decades of use. Recognizing the technical significance of this movement, Zenith has decided to bring it back once more for the new El Primero 410, limited to 500 pieces. All the details after the jump.

Did you know Harry Houdini has ties to watchmaking? He does. In fact, he named himself after French clockmaker Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin - Houdini was actually worn as Erik Weisz. It turns out, he happened to own a rather impressive timepiece as well - a minute repeating chronograph with triple date and moonphase. The watch was presented to Houdini from his early manager and friend Harry Day, and the inside of the hunter-style case is engraved as such. The watch is not signed by a manufacturer, though.

In 2004, an emerging Peter Speake-Marin built upon his Piccadilly line with a model called the Serpent Calendar, so named due to the serpentine shaped hand used to read the date. For Baselworld 2012, Peter has revisited this particular watch, giving a full update, from dial and case to the movement itself.

The new dial design moves the date indication to the inner dial, thus shortening the distinctive date hand for which it is named. The roman numerals remain within the white-lacquered dial emblazoned with the mark of the 'topping tool' motif at 6 o'clock. The case is offered in the same 38mm and 42mm options, although it has gone on a diet, losing nearly 2mm off its thickness, measuring in at 12mm.

Inside is the new Eros 1 caliber, and is pure Speake-Marin with the bright blue 'mystery' rotor taking center stage. The movement features a 5 day power reserve and is names after a famous landmark statue in Piccadilly Circus, London, where Peter spent many of his formative years.

2013 is Jaeger-LeCoultre's 180th anniversary, and to celebrate they have presented a "Jubilee" collection. The most impressive of this trio of watches is the Gyrotourbillon Three, which we showed you in great detail in episode three of the Road To Basel. The second watch in this Jubilee set is the cylindrical tourbillon with perpetual calendar. It's definitely an amazing piece, too. But to me, the most interesting watch in Jaeger-LeCoultre's 180th anniversary Jubilee set is one of the most simple, clean watches JLC has made in a long time. In fact, it might set the new standard for complete elegance. Actually, the Master Ultra-Thin Jubilee does literally set a new standard for something - it is the thinnest mechanical watch on earth, with case thickness of just 4.05mm. Read on for more about this incredible watch.

A. Lange & Söhne made a big splash at SIHH this year with the release of a monster Grand Complication (some would call it a "Grand, Grand Complication" due to not only its level of complexity - 7 complications with an untold number of components, but also a 50mm by 20mm case, and a 1.92 million euro price tag) and a split-seconds perpetual calendar (which we showed you in great detail here) but to me, and probably to you, the most interesting offering from Lange from a consumer perspective was the new 1815 Up/Down. In fact, I might even say that this new release (based on a watch previously available with the same name), could be up there as the one of the few quintessential "entry-level" Langes in production. Of course, entry level for this great Glashutte manufacture is hardly what we'd call "approachable" by most, but everything is relative and we'll get to cost later in this article. First, let's watch a little video explanation by Anthonie de Hass, from Lange: